AVG Internet Security 7.5 review

Two years of protection from AVG

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Our Verdict

Its interface needs an overhaul, and doesn't quite do enough to justify spending money on

For

Good spam filter

Against

Unpolished interface

Vulnerable firewall

AVG has an interesting take on the pricing for its Internet Security 7.5 suite as the default price of £42 (inc. VAT) covers you for two years. If you choose, you can pay £32 to keep one laptop updated for one year and there are discounted rates for two, three or five laptops for one and two years, so there is something to suit all requirements.

The four elements to the suite are anti-virus, anti-spyware, anti-spam and a firewall with a central interface that will be familiar to anyone who has used the free version of AVG anti-virus.

It's big, clunky and cartoon-like and, while there's no mistaking the function of the enormous 'Scan Computer' button, the interface could do with some polishing. A warning will pop up when something nasty is found and this thrusts the control centre to the fore; however, you have to clear the pop-up before you can take any action.

If you have your doubts about a specific file or drive you can right-click to scan part of your laptop, but the same issues arise should a problem be detected.

It seems AVG has put the emphasis on avoiding infestations instead of merely clearing them out once they have established a hold on your laptop. In principle this is a good idea, but the firewall seems rather weak and feeble.

It runs through a configuration routine after installation to assign a profile based on your network connection and then stealths your laptop to make it invisible to ne'er-do-wells on the internet, but that seems to be the limit to its clever thinking.

And while we're picking fault, the anti-spyware element didn't seem to be any more effective than free software such as Spybot.

On a positive note, the spam filter worked away silently in the background and tended to allow the odd piece of spam through to the inbox instead of being over-cautious and blocking legitimate email.